1965 Movado Trans-Atlantic Sub Sea 50

THE WATCH

In the 1960's, Movado was a powerhouse of Swiss horology, standing shoulder to shoulder with Zenith and Universal Geneve. The Movado Trans-Atlantic Sub Sea 50 was designed as a "high performance" dress watch, a precursor to the modern luxury sport watch. The story goes, in the mid 1950's Movado strapped a watch to a hull of a liner boat leaving France to New York. The watch was held in sea water across the entire journey across to New York and then back to France. Upon arriving back in France the was was still sealed against the elements and working. This proved to Movado their water proofing system worked and names the watch appropriately the Trans-Atlantic Sub Sea 50. The "50" stands for its depth rating (50 meters), which was impressive for a slim, elegant case in the early 1960's. This specific refence, the J13091 is known among collectors as the Mark 1. It represents the purest expression of the line before the quartz crisis shifted designs towards thinner, less substantial cases. Powered by a movement based on Universal Geneve architecture, it remains a testament to the era when Movado movements were among the finest in the world.

CONDITION REPORT

This J13091 Mark 1 example is in exceptional collector grade vintage condition, far exceeding what is typically found in these Sub Seas on the market today.  The 36mm stainless steel case retains its sharp, beefy lug profile.  It shows honest signs of light wear consistent with age, with the "Sub-Sea" engraving on the caseback remaining deep and legible. It looks to be unpolished but may have had a light polishing in the past. The watch features the rare and highly desirable original signed Movado crown, a component often lost to service replacement over the decades. It features an acyrlic crystal that is free of scratches and in excellent condition. The start of the watch is a stunning brushed silver dial that looks to have almost a linen texture in some lights. It is in excellent condition and unlike many examples from this era, the dial is remarkably clean, and free of heavy patina or discoloring. There is only a faint freckle of oxidation on the dial just below the hour and minute hand, but barely visible unless under a loupe. The dial features an applied Movado logo and retains strong Movado Trans-Atlantic and Sub Sea 50 printing in black with no fading. The Switzerland logo is present and strong at the bottom of the dial just below the six o'clock marker. The stick indices are gorgeous and reflect the light beautifully along with the brushed silver dial. The watch houses an in-house manual wind caliber 347 with smooth winding and keeping excellent vintage time. The movement is 17 jewels and beats at 18,000 vph. The caliber 347 is based on a similar movement by Universal Geneve. The watch comes on a honey brown handmade leather strap by Handdn.

SPECS

Brand: Movado

Model/Reference: Trans-Atlantic Sub Sea 50 Ref J13091 'Mark 1"

Movement: Caliber 347, manual wind

Yea: 1965

Condition: Pre-owned

Case Material: Stainless Steel

Dial: Brushed Silver

Case Diameter: 36mm

Lug to Lug: 42.5mm

Case Thickness: 9.1mm

Lug Width: 19mm

Crystal: Acrylic

Water Resistance: N/A

Strap: Honey Brown handmade leather by Handdn

Box & Papers: No

THOUGHTS

The Trans-Atlantic Sub Sea is one of the most underrated vintage pieces around and a sleeper from on of the greats in the industry. It wears like a dream at 36mm and is remarkably similar on the wrist to a Universal Geneve Polerouter. The Sub Sea is incredible value for money and makes a fantastic alternative, and more unique in my opinion, to a vintage Omega Seamaster or Universal Geneve Polerouter. There is a specific joy in finding a time capsule watch, and this Sub Sea 50 is exactly that. What I love most about this piece is how well it wears on the wrist for its larger 36mm size and due to its substantial lug design. When you catch the light on the vertical brushing of the silver dial, you realize why vintage Movado is currently one of the most undervalue segments on the market. This is a collector grade example that offers the heritage, style, and legendary movement for an insane value. It is quite simply the best version of this watch I have seen in recent years and one that I would have been happy to add to my collection if I didn't already have too many dress/sport watches.